PATTYCAKES

Did you ever notice it is often not the big things that really drag us down, it is the little irritants. If a big crisis comes along, we rise to the occasion. We are of tough stock and we endure. We stretch ourselves in unknown ways. After all, we are children of God, Deity, so our heritage gives us the power and ability to do this. But, sometimes the little irritants in life can really drag us down. These irritants come in many forms, and cause us to stew inside, feeling a sense of frustration that looms in the back of our minds but we cannot really put our finger on what has got us feeling down. It might be the new fees added on to your phone bill, you know the ones that are the state sales taxes, then the county sales taxes and of course the local sales taxes. Don't forget the federal universal service fund, which is nothing more than another tax. There are the delivery charges and the energy charges and the monthly service charges and so forth as well. We find these on all our utility bills and when we get notice that each of these charges is going up, "to better align with what OTHER people are paying on their bills" you gotta wonder! Or maybe it is the drop of spaghetti sauce you dribbled on your clean white shirt and you are out in public with nary a thing you can do about it. Perhaps you just feel irritated that the replacement phone, that was replacing another replacement phone because your original phone stopped working properly after a few months, is once again, not working properly. Maybe the six visits from the appliance repair store to fix a two year old range is the thing that is getting you down. Maybe your favorite TV show is off the air or the one you were rooting for to win Dancing With the Stars has been booted off. At any rate, these things, left unchecked, can really drag a person's spirit down "faster than a cat on a hot tin roof"!

But, lest this post turn into a sobfest, or a pity party, there is hope. There are the small things in our life we must learn to appreciate and recognize and when we create the habit of doing so, there are big rewards. This positive attitude is difficult for me, but I am working on it. I liked a talk I heard recently in General Conference where Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin spoke about "Come what may, and love it!" We don't need to find blame for our misfortunes or waste time feeling sorry for ourselves. There are always going to be ups and downs in our lives and we are going to hit lots of bumpy roads. People that are the happiest in life are those that learn from the difficult times and become stronger and wiser for them. For me, I am trying to learn that less is more. That having all that our family needs is WAY more important than our family having all that it wants. And, we do have all that we need, way more in fact. Really what it all comes down to is that we need to have GRATITUDE. I have written about gratitude before but since we are moving towards celebrating Thanksgiving, I thought I would mention it again. Gratitude is a sign of maturity. President Hinckley told us that to be grateful means we have humility rather than pride, and generosity rather than selfishness. So, I get to the big reward; to have joy in this life. It is in our power to do so for it is all in our attitude towards the little irritants, and also toward those small but powerful joys!

Some of my joys are found below!

Lemons and grapefruit, ripening and turning yellow in November getting ready for harvest when we ring in the new year!
Cracking nuts during the holidays, a family favorite! Sparkling water in the desert. Palm trees on a winter's day.
And while some of you are experiencing even greater joy in this than I am, we are thrilled to see the first sign in our area to drop below $2!

What is your joy?